How many Milwaukee's?

[thinkinmom]

I'm new here.
I wore a Milwaukee brace for 4 years (back in the late 80's).

I've been reading around this forum and have seen very little about Milwaukee braces...

Who else had the joy being known as the "girl from Sixteen Candles"... you know, the one who fell over trying to finish her soda from a can. :D

[Qikdraw]

My very first brace was a milwaulkee, also the one right after my surgery was as well.

The vast majority of mine were a Boston brace though, although different from the pics of others I've seen. (maybe its not a Boston??) Mine was in 2 pieces, basically like ancient armour, a back piece and a front piece, velcro straps on both sides and over the shoulders. To put it on I had to lay down into the back piece and then put on the front piece.

My very first Milwaulkee was leather and steel my mother says. I don't remember it at all, it was when I was around 2 years old. I really only remember bracing from 5 years old and up.

[sccrm08]

I wore a Milwaukee Brace for about 4 or 5 years in the late 70's. I wore it faithfully but hated every minute of it.

[debbei]

I had one from 76 to (I think) 80. ICK the worst thing in my life. I remember when I finally got rid of it during the day in my senior year of high school, FINALLY the boys went crazy over me because all of a sudden they saw I had a figure and I wasn't some bulky mess.

[TraumaScoli]

I'm new here.
I wore a Milwaukee brace for 4 years (back in the late 80's).

I've been reading around this forum and have seen very little about Milwaukee braces...

Who else had the joy being known as the "girl from Sixteen Candles"... you know, the one who fell over trying to finish her soda from a can. :D

I wear one now for super excellent pain management. I had scoliosis as a kid and wore many braces all was well until I was involved in an accident that screwed everything up 10 years ago. Without it my spinal chord does strange things and sometimes my legs stop working. I finnaly got used to it and it is all good.:)

[tonibunny]

I wore one as a child, I had infantile idiopathic scoliosis and got my first Milwaukee when I was three or four. I'd alternate them with plaster bodycasts (which I wore during the winter months) and I wore them 23 hours a day until I had my first surgery when I was 10.

Looking back it wasn't great, but I'm thankful that I grew up not really knowing any different. It must have been a hell of a lot worse for all you teens who were suddenly faced with wearing one :(

One thing that always surprises me is that kids often mention that they struggle to take their Boston braces off and put them on, and that they need help to do so. I was able to get my Milwaukee on and off by myself from the age of 7, because I was allowed to do so for school PE. Anyone else remember the crunching sound as you did the nut at the back of the metal collar up?

The thumbnail that I've uploaded is a picture of a brace that is exactly the same as the Milwaukees that I had, in fact I guess it could have been made at the same hospital! :)

[debbei]

I wore one as a child, I had infantile idiopathic scoliosis and got my first Milwaukee when I was three or four. I'd alternate them with plaster bodycasts (which I wore during the winter months) and I wore them 23 hours a day until I had my first surgery when I was 10.

Looking back it wasn't great, but I'm thankful that I grew up not really knowing any different. It must have been a hell of a lot worse for all you teens who were suddenly faced with wearing one :(

One thing that always surprises me is that kids often mention that they struggle to take their Boston braces off and put them on, and that they need help to do so. I was able to get my Milwaukee on and off by myself from the age of 7, because I was allowed to do so for school PE. Anyone else remember the crunching sound as you did the nut at the back of the metal collar up?

The thumbnail that I've uploaded is a picture of a brace that is exactly the same as the Milwaukees that I had, in fact I guess it could have been made at the same hospital! :)

That's the same one I wore. I too was able to get in and out of mine by myself; I really didn't think anything of it. I do remember the first few months especially sometimes feeling faint or even fainting because the girdle part was so tight I could barely take a deep breath. My mother finally threw mine out no more than 10 years ago.

[tonibunny]

Mine had pads on straps too, one for each curve - I guess that would be the case for all of us who had scoliosis. I used to have a very bad habit of gnawing on the plastic chin rest! :o

[thinkinmom]

Good to hear I'm not the only one! :)

There are days when I still yearn for my brace...no not for the odd looks or terrible memories of junior high :p , but for the support. I loved the feeling of being straight and supported in my brace. It was comforting during the weaning process to be back in my secure "cocoon."

At least I wore mine in the 80's when it was "in" to wear your collar turned up (that hid the back pads, or "rabbit ears" as I called them.)

[braced]

I wore one for about 3 yrs in the mid 70's from the age of 14 , the girdle was leather with heavy straps and pads for correction . also the head rest and chin pad was leather.

I used to wriggle into it and do up the straps but never to the correct tightness . I remember my parents or teachers at school pulling the straps very tight and my body being pulled into shape , the chin pad was so uncomfortable !

I could never release the straps without help .

[RitaR]

I, too, wore a Milwauke for years when I was younge. Not sure of hte benefit, though, as I now have cure 80+ degrees and awaiting appt with swurgeon.

[mgs]

I wore mine from June, 1973 - Feb 1977, from just out of 6th grade until mid 10th grade,faithfully. My curves, which were mild, didn't change much during those years, or in the years immediately following. Like most of us, I was told that once skeletal maturity was reached, we were out of the woods. (I will never understand how anyone ever came up with that canard.) Then I started having children, at 23, and I was socked (over the 5 pregnancies) with about a 60*+ INCREASE in my thoracic curve.

The Milwaukee brace was, at best, a waste of time, money, energy and emotion.

[valleygirl]

I wore one also from 1967 to 1971. Absolutely hated it and was miserable. I did wear it faithfully for 23 hours a day until I started high school, at which time I refused to be seen in it ever again. I just recently was able to get copies of my medical records related to that treatment and now I'm not completely convinced that those that treated me really knew what they were doing? Sometimes my measurements were better and sometimes they were unchanged.

[Snoopy]

My daughter was prescribed a "modified" Milwaukee brace in 2003.

Mary Lou

[sasha]

I wore one after my fusion op in the 60's but it was metal and leather with buckles and screws, so I had to have my mum loosen it off each night, to bathe the sore parts on my body, then screw the awful contraption all back up again. It was horrible! And the neck part meant I had to wear braces on my teeth to stop them being pushed forward..... Oh happy days!

[RitaR]

former Milwaukee brace wearer here - not sure what good it did, but not the less.

[kdsims]

This was the first time I ever smiled thinking about my brace,it was awfull but my mom allways told me just think about that figure your gonna have and sure enuff when I came out of it the boys took notice.lol.Mine used to cut the back of my hair where it came together on the back of my neck,geesh what awfull memories from that thing.